Slavery in supply chains
Tiffany Cloynes and Clare Hardy explore what responsibility councils may have in the future to eliminate slavery and human trafficking in their supply chains.
Council chiefs call for devolution process to be ‘reignited’
20/09/2019 The Government must 'reignite the devolution process' to give all parts of England more powers and funding, council leaders have demanded. |
Smoking rates dropping at fastest rate in a decade
19/09/2019 The number of adult smokers fell by 2.2% in the first half of this year, according to the latest figures. |
Funding to train nurses should be expanded to public health workers, council chiefs say
11/09/2019 Funding to train nurses should be expanded to cover public health workers including health visitors and school nurses, the Local Government Association says. |
Health charity warns of ‘systematic failure’ in adult social care
30/08/2019 The Government must spend an extra £7.5bn a year by 2023/24 to stabilise and reform adult social care in England, a new report has argued. |
Council chiefs back campaign promoting physical activity
29/08/2019 Local authority leaders are backing a campaign to help the 15 million people who live with long-term health conditions in England do more physical activity. |
Greater Manchester to invest over £14m in ‘digital transformation'
29/08/2019 Greater Manchester is set to see £14.3m invested into digital transformation which aims to allow the safe and secure sharing of health-related information. |
Over one billion fewer cigarettes smoked each year, charity says
29/08/2019 More than a billion fewer cigarettes smoked each year, although campaigners argue this number could be higher if stop smoking service cuts were reversed. |
Housing crisis forcing 1.3 million children to live in ‘overcrowded’ conditions
22/08/2019 A new study has revealed that more than one in 10 children in England are living in overcrowded homes because of a lack of suitable housing. |
Court upholds abortion clinic ‘buffer zone’
22/08/2019 The Court of Appeal has upheld Ealing Council’s protest-free ‘buffer zone’ which is located outside of an abortion clinic in the London borough. |
Over 10 million patients in hospitals with ‘dangerous pollution levels’
19/08/2019 Nearly a quarter of hospitals in England are located in areas with poor air quality, new research reveals. |
New partnership to boost HealthTech innovation across Leeds
15/08/2019 A new cross-sector partnership has been signed to boost health technology innovation across the Leeds City Region. |
Havant BC calls for better water quality testing
02/08/2019 Havant Borough Council is proposing to form a partnership with other local authorities to lobby for further water quality testing and monitoring. |
Impact of Integrated Care Fund 'remains unclear'
18/07/2019 The impact of the Integrated Care Fund in Wales remains ‘unclear’ despite a £385m investment, the Auditor General has warned today. |
Next PM has ‘100 days’ to save local government
15/07/2019 A think tank has called on the next Prime Minister to announce a one year emergency local government finance settlement during their first 100 days in office. |
Rudd orders ‘evaluation’ of benefits for people with terminal illnesses
12/07/2019 Amber Rudd has asked the DWP to set up an 'honest and in depth evaluation' of how the benefits system supports people nearing the end of their life. |
Online tool to calculate health impact of trees published
11/07/2019 A new online tool which can help councils calculate how much pollution would be removed by planting trees in local areas has been launched. |
Whitehall announces £135m for health and social care system
11/07/2019 The Government has announced a multi-million pound investment to help tackle the biggest issues facing health and social care over the next five years. |
A war on pesticides?
10/07/2019 With 40 councils now banning the use of Roundup over safety fears, Mark Whitehead finds out why the debate on using chemicals to kill weeds continues to rage. |
Birmingham CC to pilot ‘car free’ areas outside schools
10/07/2019 A scheme to ban vehicles from roads near schools at the start and end of the day is to be tried in Birmingham from September. |
Free HPV vaccination to be offered to boys
09/07/2019 Local authority leaders have welcomed an announcement that from boys will be offered the free Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine for the first time. |
Air pollution ‘shortening the lives of children’, report reveals
08/07/2019 A new study has revealed that air pollution could be shortening the lives of children in Birmingham by seven months. |
Health and wellbeing boards make ‘real difference’, council chiefs say
03/07/2019 Boards set up to promote collaboration between health and social care professionals are achieving success, according to local government leaders. |
Policies to clean up air pollution ‘effective’, research suggests
27/06/2019 Policies to clean up air pollution in the UK over the past 40 years have led to significant reductions in human exposure to air pollution, research suggests. |
Over 500,000 social housing tenants in poverty due to smoking
27/06/2019 Over half a million social housing tenants are living in poverty due to the cost of smoking, anti-smoking campaigners say. |
Thousands of overspill beds being used for routine care, report says
24/06/2019 Hospital beds that are supposed to be used only during emergencies and periods of high demand are being utilised for routine care, investigation reveals. |
Cuts impacting on oral health in care homes, council chiefs warn
24/06/2019 Care home residents are not supported to ‘maintain and improve’ their oral health, the national health and social care regulator has revealed. |
Service launched to help 55,000 children who are addicted to gambling
24/06/2019 The NHS has announced the launch of the health service’s first young people’s gambling addiction service to help tackle the ‘scourge’ of problem gambling. |
Sure Start had ‘major benefits’ for disadvantaged children, think tank says
04/06/2019 The twenty-year-old childcare programme has had major health benefits for children in poorer neighbourhoods, a new analysis reveals. |
Over 14 million people live with more than one long-term condition, study shows
22/05/2019 Almost one in four people are living with long-term multiple health conditions, according to new research. |
Hackney publishes guide to banning traffic outside schools
17/05/2019 Hackney Council has launched a new toolkit designed to help local authorities ban traffic outside of schools at opening and closing times. |
Thousands with arthritis unaware of available council support, survey finds
08/05/2019 Thousands of people with arthritis are unaware of how to access support from their local council, a new survey has revealed. |
Charity calls for £2.4bn Dementia Fund
08/05/2019 A report calling for a new £2.4bn Dementia Fund has received backing from 68 cross-party MPs. |
Digital health hub to be rolled out after ‘successful’ pilot
01/05/2019 A digital health and wellbeing learning centre is to be scaled up across England after a successful pilot, NHS Digital has announced. |
Councils need more powers to tackle junk food adverts, campaigners say
24/04/2019 Campaigners have called for local authorities to be given more powers to push back against junk food advertising. |
Don’t play the hokey-cokey with health
18/04/2019 Local government has turned public health around despite funding cuts. Now it not the time to think about returning the service to the NHS, argues Nathan Elvery. |
Digital portal showing care home vacancies launched
16/04/2019 Local authorities have partnered with the NHS to provide a new digital portal which shows how many vacancies there are in local care homes. |
Primary schools to be provided with free sanitary products
16/04/2019 Free sanitary products will be offered to girls in all primary schools in England from early next year, the Government has announced. |
Council proposes introducing more smoke-free spaces
12/04/2019 Derbyshire residents could soon be asked to decide on whether they want more smoke-free places in their county. |
London councils agree to 4,000 extra places on HIV trial
12/04/2019 The capital’s boroughs have agreed to provide over 4,000 extra places on a trial of HIV prevention medicine. |
NHS commits nearly £5m to digital adult social care projects
02/04/2019 Local government leaders have urged councils to bid for money to improve the use of technology for adult social care services. |
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Charity calls for free personal care for elderly
27/03/2019 Campaigners have called on councillors to back a call for free personal care for the over-65s. |
Government announces nearly £400,000 to tackle FGM
27/03/2019 Communities secretary James Brokenshire has announced £375,000 of funding to tackle female genital mutilation (FGM). |
Council chiefs call for ‘urgent investment’ in children's health visitors
21/03/2019 The health visiting service is ‘stretched to its limits’ due to underinvestment and a shrinking workforce, local authority leaders have warned. |
Councils forced to slash stop smoking services
15/03/2019 Government cuts mean only half of local authorities now offer smokers the best support to quit, according to campaigners. |
Council bans anti-abortion protests near clinic
07/03/2019 Richmond has prohibited anti-abortion protests outside a pregnancy advisory clinic after a consultation revealed the majority of residents supported a ban. |
Public satisfaction with the NHS falls to lowest level in a decade, survey reveals
07/03/2019 A poll of nearly 3,000 people found that 53% of the those surveyed in England, Scotland and Wales were satisfied with services last year. |
Council chiefs call for funds to tackle tooth decay
06/03/2019 Cuts in public health funding must be reversed to tackle tooth decay in children, local government leaders have demanded. |
Councils have delivered on public health despite cuts, report reveals
04/03/2019 Local authority delivery of public health is ‘effective, accountable, efficient’ despite losing millions in central Government cuts, data reveals. |
Planners ‘must do more’ to protect people from pollution
28/02/2019 The Government's health advisers say planning authorities must make sure new building projects protect people from air pollution. |
Whitehall to expand access to personal health budgets by 200,000
21/02/2019 Hundreds of thousands more people will be able to access personal health budgets, the Government has announced. |
Treatment cut despite ‘soaring’ alcohol-related A&E admissions
11/02/2019 Councils are reducing spending on alcohol and drug treatment services despite ‘soaring’ numbers of hospital admissions due to alcohol misuse, FOI data reveals. |
Council to provide free sanitary products in all its buildings
18/01/2019 Free sanitary products are to be provided in all buildings owned by Stoke-on-Trent City Council after it joined forces with a charity to tackle period poverty. |
York invests nearly £2m to improve air quality
10/01/2019 City of York Council plans to invest £1.6m in order to reduce the exhaust emissions from local bus services. |
Council chiefs warn of dangerous ‘must-have’ toys
24/12/2018 Local government leaders are warning Christmas shoppers to avoid potentially dangerous and fake ‘must-have’ toys. |
What will 2019 bring for local government?
24/12/2018 Turbulent waters lie ahead in 2019, says Mark Whitehead, and councils will need to watch events carefully |
Clinical Commissioning Groups ‘failing to function effectively’
20/12/2018 An inquiry into the role of Clinical Commissioning Groups has been launched after a report warned many were ‘failing to function effectively’. |
Experts warn of ‘economically irresponsible’ health inequalities
13/12/2018 Senior public health experts have called for action to halt growing inequality in provision of services in the north of England compared to the South. |
Leeds first council to provide free sanitary products
13/12/2018 Councillors in Leeds are to consider providing free sanitary products in schools and libraries throughout the city in a bid to end 'period poverty'. |
Preventable illness factor in life expectancy slow-down
12/12/2018 Preventable illnesses are one of several factors behind the slowing improvements in life expectancy in England, the national health body warns. |
Whitehall to cut £85m from public health budget
10/12/2018 Local authorities have warned they are having to make 'difficult decisions' over maintaining public health services. |
Council fined £27,000 over Legionella case
07/12/2018 A district council has pleaded guilty to a health and safety breach after a leisure centre customer contracted Legionnaire’s Disease. |
Whitehall announces £1m ‘pocket park’ fund
05/12/2018 Community groups can bid for a share of a £1m fund to help them develop ‘pocket parks’. |
Greater Manchester’s reforms ‘as radical as the creation of the welfare state’
29/11/2018 Greater Manchester is radically overhauling the way it delivers public services in what is being billed as a ‘big test for devolution’. |
Public health progress put at risk by cuts
27/11/2018 The Government must restore councils’ public health grants because of their important role in the urgent task of improving public health, according to a report from leading health think tank, The King’s Fund. |
Hospitals struggling to care for people with ‘multiple conditions’
13/11/2018 Hospitals can expect a huge rise in the work they have to do because the number of people suffering more than one condition is increasing, experts say. |
Councils call for powers to ban junk food advertising
07/11/2018 Local authority leaders have urged the Government to give them the powers to ban junk food advertising as part of the struggle against childhood obesity. |
Whitehall plans to tackle bad health need ‘long-term investment’, charity says
05/11/2018 Health secretary Matt Hancock has said the Government is committed to supporting local councils in improving health locally through ‘innovation, communication and community outreach.’ |
Grimsby ‘unhealthiest’ high street in Britain
02/11/2018 Grimsby has the ‘unhealthiest’ high street in Britain, according to a study that looks at the impact of the high street on the health of a town’s residents. |
Whitehall to review health and safety standards in rental sector
29/10/2018 The Government has announced plans to review the current health and safety standards for rental accommodation. |
Whitehall’s response to air pollution ‘lacks ambition’
29/10/2018 Health bodies have criticised the Government’s approach to pollution and called for legally enforced air standards to ensure cleaner air across the UK. |
New tool to tackle cardiovascular disease launched
25/10/2018 The national health body has launched a new tool to help local commissioners decide the best approach to preventing cardiovascular disease (CVD). |
More than £3bn a year needed to reverse cuts to public health services
24/10/2018 Over £3bn a year is needed to reverse the impact of Government cuts to public health services, according to an independent health charity. |
Virgin Care awarded contract to deliver Lancashire health services
18/10/2018 Virgin Care has been identified as the preferred bidder for the delivery of 0-19 public health services in Lancashire after a legal challenge forced a reevaluation of the bid. |
Underfunded care services pressuring NHS, health regulator warns
11/10/2018 Disjointed health and social care services were placing increasing pressure on A&E departments, according to an independent health regulator. |
Emergency cash for social care ‘no substitute’ for long-term funding
02/10/2018 Announcement of an emergency injection of £240m into the social care system to stave off NHS crisis is no substitute for long-term funding, campaigners warn. |
Online takeaways should be ‘forced’ to display hygiene ratings, council chiefs say
28/09/2018 Local government leaders have called for businesses serving food to be ‘forced’ to display food hygiene ratings to improve standards and protect people. |
Liverpool hospital to be built despite Carillion collapse
27/09/2018 The building of the New Royal Liverpool Hospital, whose future was in question after the collapse of Carillion, is to restart, the Government has announced. |
Health and care inspection regime leaves ‘room for improvement’
27/09/2018 The new health and care inspection regime is a ‘significant improvement’ on the previous system, but there is room for improvement, concludes landmark report. |
Whitehall asks councils for ‘trailblazing’ ideas to fight childhood obesity
26/09/2018 The Government is asking local authorities to apply to its ‘trailblazer’ programme for tackling childhood obesity. |
Council puts tenants at risk by neglecting fire safety regulations
23/08/2018 Arun District Council put tenants at risk by failing to meet statutory health and safety requirements in relation to fire and water safety, regulator finds. |
Council defends ban on trampolines
10/08/2018 Oxford City Council has banned the use of paddling pools and trampolines in communal gardens due to health and safety concerns. |
Vulnerable offenders increasingly referred to health services rather than prison
10/08/2018 Offenders with mental health, alcohol and drug abuse problems are increasingly being referred to health services as part of community sentences. |
Council proposes 10-point plan to tackle air pollution
08/08/2018 Oxford City Council has called on the Government to adopt a 10-point plan to tackle high air pollution levels which contribute to 40,000 deaths every year. |
Northamptonshire CC ‘misappropriated’ £8m of health funds, auditors confirm
27/07/2018 Northamptonshire CC used over £8m of ring-fenced public health grant funding for activities that did not meet the grant conditions, auditors conclude. |
Severe obesity in children at record high, health body says
24/07/2018 Levels of severe obesity in children aged 10 and 11 have reached the ‘highest point’ since records began, public health body warns. |
Whitehall announces £4.5m for ‘social prescribing’ projects
24/07/2018 The Government has invested nearly £4.5m into programmes to refer patients to community services such as walking clubs or arts activities. |
Public finances perform better than expected
20/07/2018 Public finances continue to perform better than expectations, although total borrowing is up year-on-year even before the promised increase in health spending. |
Councils must ‘simplify’ access to mobility support, charity says
06/07/2018 The process by which local authorities provide support to people with mobility issues is too ‘complex and varied’, elderly persons charity warns. |
Make social care ‘free at the point of need’, former health minister says
15/06/2018 Social care should be ‘free at the point of need’ like the NHS, a bold new report into the health and care system recommends. |
Tax-raising powers for mayors could help reduce health inequalities, report says
15/06/2018 A leading research group has called for cities to be given more powers to help improve public health. |
Kids eating ‘far more sugar than is healthy’, warn health officials
15/06/2018 Children have already consumed more than the recommended intake of sugar for the whole of 2018, according to Public Health England. |
NHS announces ambition to cut delayed transfers by 25%
14/06/2018 The NHS has announced that it intends to work with local authorities to reduce the number of long staying patients by around a quarter in preparation for the winter ‘surge’. |
Council chiefs back post-Brexit health cooperation with EU
13/06/2018 Local authority leaders have backed a call for continued cooperation with the European Union in order to tackle infectious diseases after Brexit. |
Councils to share £19m to boost integration
11/06/2018 Councils in England will receive £19m to help ease pressures on housing, education and health services due to recent migration. |
Community groups ‘pivotal’ in delivering personalised care
08/06/2018 Voluntary and community organisations play a ‘pivotal role’ in delivering personalised care, a new report finds. |
Church groups supporting ‘struggling’ health care system
31/05/2018 Church groups provide health care and community services worth £3bn a year, according to a new report. |
Council chiefs warn NHS trusts £1bn ‘in the red’
31/05/2018 Local government leaders have renewed calls for extra funding for adult social care after the latest figures showing NHS trusts are almost £1bn in the red. |
Brexit threatens UK’s access to food safety systems, warn council chiefs
30/05/2018 Council leaders have called on Whitehall and the EU to ensure the UK's access to food safety and animal health systems remains available after Brexit. |
Councils should be given more powers to tackle junk food, MPs say
30/05/2018 Council leaders have welcomed a call for local authorities to be given more powers to tackle the advertising and sale of unhealthy food and drink to children. |
This issue of Local Government News explores how councils can tackle modern slavery and trafficking in their supply chains, finds out more about Cambridge's first cohousing scheme and the launch of a new project to build a shared service pattern library for local government.
This issue also contains a special focus on children's services and how councils are protecting children following local safeguarding children boards being abolished.
